BCCI’s Centre of Excellence chief VVS Laxman said moving patiently through required protocols is more important than trying to achieve a pre-set timeline in the rehabilitation process of injured cricketers. In the last two years, top-of-the-line cricketers such as Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Prasidh Krishna spent several months at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), which is now a CoE, to recover from their respective injuries, sitting out of some high-value matches. But all of them returned to the field fully fit, and, more importantly, their skillsets remained intact despite months of inaction.
Laxman, who will continue to be at the helm for another one year after getting a tenure extension, detailed the process.
“There is a misconception that the timelines have to be met. I understand that sometimes you know that you will be fit in a particular time-frame, but sometimes the recovery won’t be there (in that time) or the result won’t be seen,” Laxman told a select media gathering at the CoE after its inauguration on Sunday.
Laxman said it’s important for players to be patient while going through the rehabilitation protocols.
“I think having patience to follow the protocols is very, very critical, but still sometimes the recovery can be a little late. We have seen Rishabh Pant’s case and we have seen Jassie (Jasprit Bumrah) being here, along with Shreyas, KL, Prasidh…a lot of players. They have really worked hard, showed patience and were rewarded,” he said.
The most vital part of the recovery period, Laxman said, was to remain mentally strong.
“The challenging part of the rehab is that the entire rehab will probably be for two-three hours in the whole day and the rest of the day they (players) have nothing to do.
“Here we are talking about elite sportspersons who actually are busy playing or training six to eight hours, and suddenly they realise that they are confined to the rehab room.
“Once they recover, they progress to the ground (at NCA), but it’s a maximum four to five hours. So, they are required to be mentally strong and not get frustrated,” he noted.
Pant, who suffered a life-threatening car accident two years ago, had been vocal about how he felt frustrated during his rehab due to lack of activity.
Laxman said players also need to understand the importance of healing completely before going back to the field.
“I have been in that situation because as a player when you know the shelf-life is very less, every day you want to be out there in the middle playing as much as possible.
“But you have to accept the fact that you are required to recover properly before going and participating actively at whatever level you are playing. So, it’s important for them to be patient,” he said.
The 49-year-old also said an injury-prevention programme has been put in place to ensure breakdowns don’t happen very frequently.
“Yeah, I think we will be fooling ourselves if we think that no one will get injured, because you’re putting the body on the line. The idea is how to prevent injuries.
“So, what we have done over the last two years is to standardise the fitness standards right from top to bottom. It’s not only the Indian cricket team but even the state teams, you know, have been given various protocols to follow.” Laxman said modern training and rehabilitation facilities at the Centre of Excellence will be extended to domestic players as well.
“In terms of rehab, we have empowered the states and we’ve got telemedicine through which we discuss a case. If the rehab is not going as per plan, then that player is called to the NCA.
“We will have a thorough check and the player will be here for one week. Then we know what the plan is and then we hand over the player back to the state. So that’s again a very good collaborative effort, not just the whims and fancies of anyone,” Laxman said.
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